The Muggle
by MayDragon
Summary: Charlotte Cole was always a strange girl. She was the adventurous type, with a wild imagination. So it was no surprise to anyone in the orphanage that she was best friends with Tom Marvolo Riddle.
1. An Unlikely Friendship

**This is something that I really needed to just get out, otherwise I would forget it. To all you who read Elemental, the updates will be a little slower, but not because of this. I'm just trying to get the story moving along.**

**In no way do I own these characters, not even the obscure ones that I mention only once. Only Charlotte is of my creation.**

Charlotte Cole was born on March 2, 1928. She had black hair, and lightly freckled skin. People saw her as imaginative, kind, and excited. But she was a strange girl, as well. For one thing, her mother was the caretaker of an orphanage in London, Wool's Orphanage. Charlotte lived there with the other children, despite her father's reluctance. She had her own room, and was treated exactly like every other child in that orphanage. Secondly, she believed in all sorts of things, thing that might have been considered impossible. Charlotte believed in ghosts and magic and monsters, which slightly scared everyone, but they accepted it because she was a young girl and was prone to making up stories that weren't true. She had dreams about the monsters, too, and she wrote them all down in a little black book the she kept in her pocket. She also loved to read. She would read any book that came to the orphanage, whether it was about magic, or history, or philosophy. None of the other children even touched the big books until they were ten or eleven. But she had always liked them. But the strangest thing about this girl was that she had no friends. Nobody that she actually trusted with her secrets and the book. Nobody, that is, except for Tom Marvolo Riddle.

Tom was exactly one year, three months, and two days older than her, and he was her best friend. The unlikely friendship had started when the whole orphanage, including Charlotte, went to a small town on the coast for a day. The seven year old, black haired girl had been sitting alone on the beach for quite some time, waiting to see how long it would take before anyone noticed she was missing. It was a game she constantly played, just to see if her mother would come looking, or send another child to find her. Anyways, she had been sitting in the same spot for over two hours, when she saw a little boy climbing into a small boat by the the cliffs. Recognizing him from the orphanage, she jumped up, and began calling to him. He turned back, annoyed by the interruption.

"Do you mind if I go with you? I'm awfully bored being alone."

The boy sighed. "Fine. But don't mess up anything." Once she had climbed in and was safely sitting down, the boy tapped the boat with his finger, and the vessel began to slide throughout the still water. Charlotte gasped, and stared at the boy in wonder.

"What was that? What did you just do?"

"I don't know. I just do it. Say, haven't I seen you around the orphanage before? You're Mrs. Cole's daughter, right?"

Charlotte smiled. "Yes. I'm Charlotte**. **What's your name?"

"Tom Marvolo Riddle," he said proudly, "But you can just call me Tom."

"Oh. You're the one Billy Stubbs hates." There was a long silence as the boat floated alongside the cliffs. Charlotte spoke up.

"Where are we going?"

Tom was taken aback. This girl seemed to disregard all the horrible rumors about him, or maybe she just didn't know. "Exploring. Why aren't you scared of me?"

She giggled. "Why should I be?"

"Everyone else is. They say bad things about me, mean things."

"Well, I think you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. I read that in a book once."

"What does that mean?"

"I think it meant that you shouldn't say mean things or make assumptions about people if you don't really know them. You only think you do, because of what other people say."

He smiled. "You know, you're pretty smart for a little girl."

"Little? I'm eight years old! You can't be _that _much older than me!"

He smirked. "I turn ten in December."

She huffed and caroused her arms. "Well, it's only July, so you're not ten _yet."_

Tom smiled, a real smile, something that nobody had seen since he was a small toddler. He liked this girl. She was smart, and not afraid to talk to him, even though he had done strange things. She was different than the others. He decided to put her to the test. He decided to take her to the cave.

"Do you want to see something exciting? Something nobody else has seen before, without going insane?"

Charlotte grinned, and nodded enthusiastically. "Is this what made Amy and Dennis go quiet last year? I always wondered what made them do that. Is it scary?"

"Yes. You may never be the same again. You could end up like them. Are you sure?"

She took a deep breath, and looked him straight in the eyes. "Yes."

And that was when they floated up next to the cave, a giant black hole. Tom tied the boat to a rock, and hopped out. He offered his hand to the little girl, who was looking around with wide eyes. He led her into the cave, to the underground lake. She hesitated before climbing into the little dinghy they would take to the island. As the boat glided through the still water, he asked her a question.

"Are you scared?"

"Yes."

"Do you want to stop?"

"No. You can't stop just because you're scared, nobody would do anything interesting. Are those bodies in the water? How did they end up here?"

He liked her even more.

And that was the start of the strange friendship between Charlotte Cole and Tom Marvolo Riddle.

**So, good or no? Tell me!**


	2. Dumbledore

**Sooo… this is when the story actually starts to kick off! This took me a while, because I used the movie script to write the scene with Dumbledore, so I had to keep watching, then pausing and rewinding, and watching a bit more… you get the picture. Anyways, if you recognize it, it's not mine, though I wish it was.**

For as long as he could remember, Tom Riddle had been alone. He relied on nobody, cared for nobody, and in return, nobody cared too much for him. Until he met the adventurous Charlotte Cole. After the day at the cave, he discovered just how different she was from the others.

Not only did she _not _make fun of him or mock him, she _stood by _him. This, of course, merited several insults to be thrown her way, but after everything, she still believed in what she had told him about books.

"They don't know you," she told him one time after a particularly bad day. "I know you, and you know you, so who cares what they think? You have an amazing gift, Tom. You can't let other people's fear of it scare you away." Charlotte also know about Tom's "abilities". A year after they had met, a snake had gotten into the orphanage courtyard. The pair had found it being poked and prodded with sticks by the older children.

Charlotte, being quite mature and sensible for a little girl, had run in and stopped the torture by picking up the snake. This made the others run away in disgust, calling out names as they went back inside. Tom squatted next to her, and began to pet the snake. He had always had a strange fascination with the creatures, and was glad to see someone else shared the respect.

"Want to see something?"

Charlotte grinned. "Is it more magic?"

"I think it is." Tom focused on the snake, and took a deep breath. "_Hello."_

The snake looked straight at him. "_You can __speak to me… But you are like the nice girl… Human…"_

Charlotte's eyes were wide with delight. "You… you _spoke _to him! What did he say?"

Tom smiled at her enthusiasm. "He was surprised I could speak to him, and he said you were nice."

The snake made a hissing noise, and Charlotte looked to Tom for translation.

"He also thinks you are very pretty, for a human."

The girl smiled. "Well, thank you… What's your name?"

"_We do not have names… unless one is given by a human. She may call me whatever she wishes."_

"He doesn't have a name, but said you can make one up for him."

"Hmm… I'll have to think about it." A bell rang from inside the orphanage. "Ooh! That's supper. Will you be back tomorrow?"

"_Yes…"_

"He will."

Charlotte smiled. "Good. I've never met a snake before…" She got up and began to walk back inside.

The snake turned to Tom. "_She's a good human… Very wise… Don't let her go…" _The snake slithered back into the cores before Tom could react.

* * *

Over the years, Tom and Charlotte became inseparable. They did everything with each other, including spending countless hours with the snake, who Charlotte had named Nagini. She said it sounded "snake-like". And they remained this way until the summer before Tom turned twelve, when Mrs. Cole walked into his room with a man with a long red beard.

"Tom, you have a visitor." She motioned for her daughter to follow her out of the room. Grudgingly, Charlotte got off the windowsill she had been sitting on, and cast a confused look at Tom. He shrugged, just as Dumbledore closed the door.

"How do you do, Tom?" The old man said.

"You're a doctor, aren't you?"

"No. I am a professor."

Tom stared at the wall in front of him. "I don't believe you. She wants me looked at. They think I'm… different."

Dumbledore smiled. "Well, perhaps they're right."

Tom became angry. "I'm not mad!"

The old man corrected himself. "Hogwarts is not a place for mad people, Hogwarts is a school. A school of magic." He paused. "You can do things, can't you, Tom? Things other children can't."

"I can make things move without touching them. I can make animals do what I want without training them. I can make bad things happen to people who are mean to me. I make them hurt, if I want. Who are you?"

Dumbledore stared in amazement at this child. "I am like you, Tom. I'm different."

"Prove it."

The wardrobe was covered in flames. "I think there's something trying to get out of your wardrobe, Tom." The little boy opened the door, and grabbed the small box that was inside. As soon as he straightened up, the fire went out. He emptied the box onto his small bed.

"Thievery is not tolerated at Hogwarts, Tom. You'll not only be taught how to use magic, but how to control it. Do you understand me?" He turned, and began to walk out the door. Tom called after him.

"I can speak to snakes, too. They find me, whisper things. Is that normal for someone like me?"

Dumbledore was silent for a long moment. "No." And he walked away.

Charlotte had been standing at the end of the hall. When she saw the old professor walk out of Tom's room, she ran inside.

"Well? What did he want?"

Tom was staring out the window. "He said he was like me…. That he teaches at a school for people like me. He wants me to go."

"Well, do _you_?"

"I'm not sure."

* * *

However, one month later, the old man returned, claiming he was taking Tom to get his school supplies.

"Can Lottie come with us?" Dumbledore was confused.

"Who is Lottie?"

"My best friend. She was the one who was there the first time you came. She knows I can do magic. And I told her about Hogwarts."

"Can she do magic, as well?"

"No, but she likes to watch me do magic, and she likes talking to snakes, too."

"Listen, Tom. Talking to snakes is very… uncommon, even for people like us. I would ask you to not mention that ability to very many people. They could react the wrong way, like the others at the orphanage."

"But what about Lottie? Can she come?"

Dumbledore sighed. "If you absolutely trust her not to tell anyone else, yes. She may come with us." The boy's eyes brightened, and he rushed off to find his friend.

During the trip, Dumbledore found out exactly why "Lottie" was so well liked by Tom. She was inquisitive, and loved the idea of magic. And, as many others had noticed, he found she was very, very, smart for her age.

"So, you're a wizard? Like Merlin? What about witches? Oh, and other myths, like dragons and ghosts! Are they real, too?"

Dumbledore smiled. He loved the curious nature of this girl. She was good for Tom, whom he had doubts about. "Yes. But try not to talk too loudly about all this in front of Muggles. We have to keep it a secret, alright?"

She nodded. "I understand. What are Muggles?"

"People who don't have magic, like you and your mother."

"So I'm a Muggle? That's a funny word… Do you know any ghosts?"

The rest of the trip remained that way, with Charlotte asking questions about everything. Out of all the shops, she loved Flourish and Blott's the most, as well as the owl emporium. When they returned, she gave the old professor a hug, and ran off to her room, where she placed the small bag of candies Dumbledore had purchased for her.

The other two stayed back for a little. Tom had been silent for most of the trip, and was staring wistfully in the direction his friend had went.

"What's on your mind, Tom?" The older man asked, sensing the unsure feelings Tom was experiencing.

"When I go to Hogwarts, will I be able to come back? To visit Lottie?"

Dumbledore smiled. He had seen the way the young boy had looked at his friend, and was absolutely convinced there was something there. "Yes. Every summer, and during Christmas and Spring holidays."

Tom nodded, and began to walk back to his room. "Thank you, sir. I'll see you at Hogwarts."

"Yes… Hogwarts…" The professor turned on the spot, and vanished into thin air

* * *

**What's going to happen now? Will they stay friends? Will he be influenced by the Slytherins and hate her for being a Muggle? Will she be a secret, just like the rest of the orphanage? And how is Nagini alive right now? Doesn't that make her, like, fifty years old during the Golden Trio era? Thought food!**

**What if Narnia was a pocket universe within the world of Doctor Who? Or a parallel one? Would ****this make the rings similar to dimension cannons? And the wardrobe a rift? Or maybe the professor's house is on a rift… SOMEBODY WRITE ME A FANFIC FOR THAT!**


End file.
